Top 25 Tweens
by angellwings
Summary: SWaC/JONAS. Sonny, Chad, and the Lucas boys are chosen to be in a photo spread for Tween Weekly's "Top 25 Tweens" feature. Chaos obviously follows when Chad and Stella strike up a flirtation. Joe/Stella, Chad/Sonny, Kevin/Macy.
1. Breakfast and Jealousy

Top 25 Tweens

by angellwings

* * *

**Chapter One: Breakfast and Jealousy**

* * *

Sonny skipped happily into the commissary that morning and hummed as she sat down next to Tawni.

"What's with you?" Tawni asked.

"I've been picked as one of Tween Weekly's Top Twenty Five Tweens of 2009!" Sonny exclaimed. "I'm so excited!"

"What?!" Tawni yelled. "How could they pick you and NOT pick me?"

Sonny winced, "They didn't pick you? I thought for sure that if they-"

"Well, they didn't!" Tawni pouted.

"Well, they did nominate you for a Tween Choice Award!" Sonny said with a gulp.

"Yeah, for the same category as you!" Tawni said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Um, sorry?" Sonny said weakly.

She scoffed and stood up, "I'm going to go look at the new So Random poster on the side of the soundstage."

Sonny watched her go with a guilty expression, and Tawni turned as she reached the commissary entrance.

"By the way, if you happen to notice something wrong with your picture on the poster later today…it wasn't me," She said in a sugary sweet tone.

Tawni shoved past Chad as she left. Chad raised an eyebrow at her and then stopped by Sonny's table.

"Wow, I haven't seen Tawni so upset since you joined Chuckle City. What did you do?" He asked.

"Me? Why does it have to me that did it?" Sonny asked with a nervous laugh.

Chad gave her a pointed look.

"Okay, fine, I was picked to be one of Tween Weekly's Top 25 Tweens and she wasn't," Sonny sighed. "I hate that every time something exciting happens to me it bums Tawni out."

"Wait, they picked you too?" Chad asked in surprise.

"Yes. Why do you sound so shocked?" Sonny asked with a slight glare.

Chad's eyes widened. That was a trick question. How should he word this?

"Well, I am…but only because you haven't been on the scene that long. I mean it's great! Unless you have a higher rank than me. Do you have a higher rank than me?" He asked fearfully.

"I don't know. What's your rank?" She asked.

"Five," he said hesitantly.

"Oh," Sonny said with a nod. "No worries then, I'm six."

"Six? Already? You just got here!" He exclaimed. "It's taken me years to be five! And still I'm defeated by Jonas, and Efron! But you managed to defeat Selena, Hannah, and Tisdale after not even a whole year."

"Oh great, so are you mad at me too now? Geez, it's not like I chose where I would rank," She huffed as she stood from her chair.

"No, I'm not…mad. Just shocked," He said slowly. "Wait, if you're ranked right behind me…then that means we'll have our photo shoot together."

"We will?" Sonny asked with a gulp. She didn't know why a slight thrill ran through her at that thought.

"Yeah, just you and me. I think. I mean that's the way it usually works," Chad said with a nervous swallow of his own. How was he going to survive a whole day of Sonny's cuteness? How? Her phone rang and she excused herself to answer. His phone rang not long after hers and he quickly answered.

"Chad's phone," He said confidently.

"Hi, Chad, this is Jackie from Tween Weekly," A lively female voice said. "I'm calling about your photo shoot for Tween Weekly. I wanted to tell you that you'll be shooting with-"

"Sonny Munroe, I know," He said quickly.

"Yes, and Jonas. We decided that since Jonas was an odd number that we would just group 2-6 into one shoot," She said in a friendly tone. "We've got the shoot scheduled for this Saturday at 2 PM. Can't wait to see you there. Have a good day, Mr. Cooper."

"Uh, you too," He said slowly as his brow furrowed. Okay he had been freaking out about spending a whole day alone with Sonny, but that didn't mean he wanted that day crashed by Jonas.

"Oh my gosh!" Sonny yelled as she hung up and turned back to Chad. "Our shoot is with Jonas! I am such a big fan! They are so cute."

"Not as cute as me," He muttered bitterly.

"What did you say?" Sonny asked curiously.

"I said 'not as cute as me'," he told her honestly.

Sonny rolled her eyes playfully, "Is anyone as cute as you?"

"In my world? No," Chad said with a shake of his head.

"That figures," Sonny chuckled. "Well, I've got a sketch to shoot so I'll see you on Saturday! Later Chad!"

"Saturday…right," Chad said with a sigh. "Isn't it enough that I have to compete with Jonas in my professional life? Now I have to compete with them in my personal life too?"

* * *

"Hey guys," Joe said as he found his brothers in the kitchen. "Has dad said anything about the Tween Weekly shoot?"

"Not yet," Nick said as he poured milk into his cereal. "I think he's on the phone with them now though."

"They better not put us with Fiona. I don't think I could take that," Joe sighed as he sat down next to Kevin.

"Where did she even rank on this years list?" Kevin asked as he buttered his toast.

Joe shrugged, "No idea, and I don't particularly care either."

"Well, boys," Tom Lucas said as he entered the kitchen. "I just got off the phone with someone named Jackie."

"And?" Nick asked expectantly.

"Your shoot is in L.A. on Saturday with Chad Dylan Cooper-"

"Oh great, that guy again," Nick said with a shake of his head.

"Maybe he's not so bad," Kevin suggested. "Frankie seems to like him."

"I guess CDC is better than Fiona," Joe shrugged. "I'll let Stella know."

The boys all stood up to leave.

"Hey!" Tom Lucas called out. "I'm not done."

"Really?" Nick asked.

"Some one named Sonny Munroe is also a part of the shoot," He told them.

All three boys broke out into grins. Joe spoke up first, "Seriously?"

"I'm guessing that's good news?" Tom Lucas asked cluelessly.

"Good news? That's GREAT news! She's only our favorite 'So Random' cast member!" Kevin cried.

"Well, I don't know about favorite, but she's definitely tied with Tawni," Joe said dreamily.

"Oh man, I cannot believe we're going to meet Sonny Munroe on Saturday!" Nick said with a grin.

"We'll need to get Stella to start working on your wardrobe," Tom told his boys as they headed out the door.

"We'll talk to her today," Kevin agreed just before they door shut behind them.

"Awesome," Joe said excitedly as they loaded into Kevin's car. "This shoot is going to be so much better than last year's."

* * *

_Coming up next: "Jello Knees and Kisses". Be warned the next chapter is really long._

_Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	2. Jello Knees and Kisses

* * *

**Chapter Two: Jello Knees and Kisses**

* * *

By the time Saturday rolled around Stella was sick and tired of hearing about Sonny Munroe. Sure she liked the girl too, but Joe seemed to think she was one of the coolest girls on the planet. She did not want to watch these guys fall all over this girl. At least not alone. That's why she had talked them into letting her bring Macy along. Macy had fainted of course, but once she woke up she had been very excited. And now Jonas and their clan were making their way to the park where the shoot would be taking place. Macy stood off to the side with Stella as everything was being set up and the wardrobe was being moved into the changing tents.

Joe rubbed his hands together eagerly, "Alright, now where is Sonny Munroe. It's time for her to meet the Joester."

Stella quirked an eyebrow at him, "The Joester? Really?"

"What?" He asked with a huff.

Macy shook her head, "I think she's amazed at your ego, Joe. As a matter of fact I think we're BOTH amazed at your ego."

Kevin laughed loudly, "Wow, you know you need to chill out when your ego is questioned by your super fan."

"If you don't watch it, Joe, you'll start sounding like Chad Dylan Cooper," Nick warned his brother.

"So, Chad Dylan Cooper has an ego, huh?" Stella asked curiously.

"Yeah, a big one," Joe said with a shake of his head.

"That's disappointing," Macy said with a shake of her head. "I hate it when attractive guys don't live up to their looks."

Kevin eyed Macy warily, "You think Chad Dylan Cooper is attractive?"

"Oh yes," Macy answered quickly. "His show is terrible, but he's very good looking. Right, Stell?"

Stella nodded, "Oh definitely. His smile causes jello knees."

"Jello knees?" Joe asked with a nervous gulp.

"Yeah, you know when your knees go all weak and you have to either sit down or grab hold of the person standing next to you," Stella clarified.

"Psh, why would you want that to happen? That sounds awfully uncomfortable," Joe scoffed. "Besides he's not THAT attractive."

"Hello ladies," Chad Dylan Cooper said as he appeared in front of them. He smiled at Macy and Stella, and they quickly looped arms and shared an excited glance. "I'm Chad. You are?"

"Macy," The brunette squeaked with a nervous laugh.

Stella smiled at him flirtatiously and held out a hand, "Stella Malone, Stylist."

"Oh, yeah," He said as he shook her hand gently. "I've heard about you."

"You have?" She asked.

"Definitely. Frankie mentioned you designed his outfit when I talked to him at my birthday party," Chad said politely.

"Really? I always knew that kid was my favorite Lucas brother," Stella grinned. "Could you show me the way to the food? I didn't get a chance to eat breakfast this morning because Joe got syrup on his shirt."

Joe stared after the two in shock, "What was that?"

Nick chuckled, "Stella made a new friend."

"Well, now what am I supposed to do? I was supposed to keep Stella entertained…now it looks like Chad Dylan Cooper's handling that," Macy asked in confusion.

Kevin bumped her shoulder lightly, "You could keep me entertained instead."

Macy blushed and let out a small laugh, "Okay."

There was a commotion from behind them, and the four of them turned to see what it was.

"Hey, Mr. I'm-a-Mountain-with-Legs, I'm part of this photo shoot! Look I left my I.D. on my dresser this morning, but I AM Sonny Munroe! I promise! Ask anyone! I'm on TV once a week…they'll recognize me…I hope."

They heard a surprised yelp and then saw Big Man walk into the room carrying Sonny Munroe in front of him at arms length. Her feet were nowhere near the ground.

"Who's body guard are you anyway? Geez, your strong," Sonny asked him rhetorically.

"Sonny Munroe!" Joe exclaimed.

Her eyes widened, "Joe Lucas!"

Sonny swallowed thickly and the two stared at each other for a few minutes before Nick realized he would need to speak up.

"Big Man, you can put her down. She actually IS Sonny Munroe," Nick said with a sigh.

Big Man set her down and then turned to face her, "Sorry Ms. Munroe. You never know what their fan girls will try to pull."

She laughed nervously, "That's okay, you were just doing your job. I have to say that I've never been lifted up that high though…at least not by another person. Impressive."

"Thanks, they don't call me Big Man for nothing," He said with a shrug as he left.

"Well, that was mildly embarrassing," Sonny said as she turned to the Lucas Brothers. "I was sort of hoping I would meet you guys with some measure of dignity, but since when have I been able to meet anyone with dignity?"

"Well," Kevin said as he shook hands with her. "I'm sure Joe was hoping to be able to say more than just your name so we're all lacking dignity today it seems."

"You know, I don't think I've ever seen Joe speechless before," Macy said observantly as she approached Sonny. "Well, at least around someone other than Stella. I'm Macy, by the way."

"Hi, Macy, it's nice to meet you," Sonny said with a chuckle. "Oh my gosh, are you wearing a Packers shirt? Please tell me you're a fan?"

"I can't decide whether I like the Packers or the Cowboys more…my devotion is split in half," Macy said seriously.

"Me too!" Sonny exclaimed. "My mom and I watch every game we can for both teams!"

"Okay, that must be awesome. My mom only understands two sports. Softball and Volleyball. She tried to watch a football game with me once…it was bad," Macy said with a shake of her head.

Nick elbowed Joe in the hopes that he would be forced to talk, but it only caused him to cough.

"Oh, are you alright?" Sonny asked him in concern.

Nick sighed as Joe continued to stare in silence, "He's fine. Oh look Joe, Stella's making out with Chad."

"WHAT? Where?" Joe asked as he whipped around frantically.

"Huh?" Sonny asked urgently. "Who's making out with Chad?"

Nick, Kevin, and Macy's eyebrows shot up. Macy bit back a chuckle. She could tell that this was going to be an interesting day.

"I don't see them!" Joe exclaimed. "Wait, you were lying weren't you?"

"Got you to talk didn't it?" Nick smirked.

"I hate you," Joe mumbled.

"So, Chad's not making out with some one?" Sonny asked worriedly.

"No, Nick was just being a pain in the butt," Joe said with a glare.

"Oh, who was he supposed to have been making out with?" Sonny asked curiously.

"Stella," Macy told her.

"Stella?" Sonny asked.

"Our best friend and Stylist," Nick clarified.

"Ah, is she pretty?" Sonny asked worriedly.

Nick and Kevin shrugged casually.

"Oh Yeah…" Joe said with a wistful sigh.

"Oh, wonderful," Sonny said sarcastically.

"Hey guys…Sonny."

Sonny jumped at the sound of Chad's voice and turned to see him approaching the group with a blonde on his arm.

"Chad," She said coolly.

"Sonny," He said in the same cold tone.

"Chad."

"Kevin."

The group turned to stare at Kevin questioningly.

"What? I thought we were saying names."

"Sonny," Chad said as he motioned to the blonde. "Meet Stella. Stella meet Sonny."

"Hi," The girls announced at the same time.

"Stella is a stylist. A very good one," Chad told Sonny as he flashed Stella a charming smile.

"Yes, Stella's a stylist. She's _our_ stylist," Joe said with a small glare as he stepped up next to Stella.

"Well, that's cool," Sonny said uncomfortably. "I was just over here talking to the guys of Jonas and their friend Macy."

Macy gasped, "Eep, I'm a friend of Jonas. Awesome."

Kevin gave her an amused look, "You've been a friend of Jonas for a while now Macy."

"Yes, but I've never heard someone else refer to me as one before!" Macy said excitedly.

"Oh, so you've been hanging out with these guys, huh?" Chad asked as he cleared his throat.

"Yes, and they've been very nice," Sonny said as she scooted a little closer to Joe.

"Yeah, and you know, Sonny's been _very_ nice as well," Joe said as he awkwardly placed an arm around Sonny's shoulders.

"Well, I'm glad you've made a new friend," Stella said as she tried not to stare at Joe's arm around Sonny Munroe.

A strained silence took over the group and Nick shook his head, "I'm going to go talk to some people who aren't afraid to admit their feelings."

Nick walked away slowly, and Kevin called after him.

"Hey! I can admit my feelings about lots of things! Like manatees! I love manatees actually!"

"And otters!" Macy told him with a smile. "You love otters too."

"That's right, I do love otters!" Kevin yelled before he led Macy after Nick's retreating form.

"See you later, guys!" Macy called to them as Kevin pulled her away.

"So…" Joe said awkwardly after his brothers were gone.

"Yeah…so," Sonny said with a nod.

"You know, Chad was telling me about this new teen club that's opening up tonight," Stella said casually.

"Oh yeah, Club Alien," Joe said with a nod. "We got an invite to the opening too."

"Really?" Stella asked. "You didn't say anything about it."

"Well, we're working today and we didn't know if we'd feel like going or not," Joe said with a shrug.

"I never really get to go dancing," Stella said as she looked pointedly at Joe. "I think it sounds like fun."

"Yeah, I'd think so too…if I had gotten an invite," Sonny said with a sigh. "I'm, apparently, not famous enough."

"So, Sonny Munroe didn't get an invite. How sad," Chad smirked. "I guess that means you want me to take you, huh? Figures."

"Hello? Did I say anything about wanting you to take me? No, I did not," She huffed. "Besides if it's that much of a hassle then don't worry your big inflated head about it."

"Fine, it's not like I wanted you to go with me in the first place," Chad fired back. "There are lots of other girls who WANT to go with me. Like Stella, right?"

Stella's eyes widened, "Huh?"

"Do you want to go with me to the opening tonight?" Chad asked.

Sonny gaped at them while Joe gave Chad a death glare.

"Fine, go. It's not like I care," Sonny scoffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. Stella cast a sidelong glance at Joe.

"Joe? Is there anything you want to ask me?"

"Me? No, what would I ask you? I certainly wouldn't ask you to go to Club Alien with me because that would be like a date…and, you know, we don't-"

"Date, yeah I get it," Stella said as she completed his sentence. "Alright, then Chad I would love to go with you tonight."

Stella and Chad walked away to discuss the details of their date and left Joe and Sonny standing alone together. Sonny took in Joe's angry gaze and knew they were suffering from the same problem.

"So, have a thing for your stylist, Joe Lucas?" She asked casually.

His angry gaze melted into a miserable one, "Yes. You and Chad?"

She sighed, "Unfortunately."

"So what do we do now?" He asked her.

"Cross our fingers and hope they crash and burn?" Sonny suggested.

"Yeah, I'm not the type to sit around and keep my fingers crossed, Sonny Munroe," Joe stated plainly.

She nodded, "I had a feeling you would say that."

"It looks like we're going to Club Alien tonight," Joe told her.

"Let me guess…we're fighting jealousy with jealousy?" Sonny asked reluctantly.

"You got a better idea?" He asked her.

"Nope," She told him simply. "So what should I wear for our fake date?"

"Anything but the color blue," He told her. "I have to see it and wear it every day at school."

"Okay, I'm good with that," Sonny said with a nod.

"Pick you up at eight?" He asked her.

"Yeah, I'll give you my address after the shoot," She said with a smile.

"Awesome," He smiled. "I'm looking forward to plotting with you."

She laughed, "Same to you."

"Hey," Nick said as he and Kevin came back. "We were just told to head to wardrobe."

"Where's Macy?" Joe asked.

"Flirting with some intern guy," Kevin mumbled bitterly. "Can we just go?"

Nick and Joe exchanged a knowing look.

"Trouble in paradise?" Sonny asked curiously.

"What are you talking about?" Kevin asked.

"You and Macy," She said as if it were obvious. "Aren't you guys a thing? I just kind of assumed by the way you were acting…"

"What? No! We're not-I mean Macy and I aren't-No!"

Sonny's eyes widened, "Oh, sorry. For the record, though, I think you would make a cute couple."

Kevin's eyes widened, "I-um-"

Sonny chuckled at his expression and began to walk toward the changing tents.

Nick and Joe followed behind her and patted Kevin on the shoulder consolingly. Kevin remained behind with a shocked expression.

"Kev!" Nick yelled over his shoulder. "Come on, man, we've got work to do!"

Kevin shook himself back to reality and jogged after the group, "Coming!"

* * *

The shoot had gone relatively well. Sonny's favorite shot had been one where she had laid across the arms of Jonas and Chad. It was cute and fun. Although it had been tough to get Chad to smile. Sonny was pleased to see that he was just as bothered by her "date" with Joe as she had been by his date with Stella.

"You are not going on a date with Joe," Chad said as they walked away from the shoot.

"And why not?"

"Because-Because…he's not your type," Chad said lamely.

Joe's eyes widened as he, his brothers, and Stella passed, "Chad seems pretty invested in Sonny's personal life, Stells."

"No, he's just concerned she's your flavor of the week, that's all," Stella said in a snippy tone.

"Ouch, Malone," Joe said patronizingly. "I would never treat Sonny Munroe in such a way."

"I believe you said the same thing about Cello Girl," Stella said with a roll of her eyes.

"Ah, but Angelina is no Sonny Munroe," Joe said as he put on a goofy smile for effect.

Kevin scratched his head and looked around the set, "Has anyone seen Macy?"

"Hi, guys!" Macy's chipper voice called across the set. "Mitchell was letting me use his camera. It's my dream camera. The one I will never be able to afford in my lifetime!"

She caught up with them and fell into step beside of Kevin.

"Yay, Mitchell," Kevin said dryly.

"What's with you?" Macy asked honestly.

"You really want to know?" He asked her.

"Yeah I would like to know! You're giving me a lot of attitude right now."

"Because you ditched me-us…I meant us…for that Mitchell guy!" He exclaimed.

"Ditched you? I didn't mean to ditch you…I just got carried away with the camera. It was really cool! I would never purposefully ditch you…I mean you're Kevin-"

"-of Jonas, I know," He said with a disheartened sigh.

"I was going to say Kevin Lucas and one of my closest friends, but if you would rather be called Kevin of Jonas then-"

There was silence after that and Nick, Stella, and Joe turned around to see what had happened. And promptly upon turning Joe's jaw dropped, Stella clapped excitedly, and Nick averted his gaze while maintaining a small grin. Kevin had interrupted Macy's sentence by kissing her soundly on the mouth, and Macy hadn't fainted. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.

Nick chuckled, "One couple down and two to go."

"What?" Joe asked his brother.

"I said 'They need to calm down so we can go'." Nick said with a blank expression.

"Oh, right, Kev, Mace…seriously, get a room," Joe said as he turned around and kept walking. "If you don't knock it off and follow us then we'll leave you here."

* * *

_Ta da and there's chapter two! The next chapter is: "Night Clubs and Closets"_

_Enjoy!_


	3. Night Clubs and Closets

* * *

**Chapter Three: Night Clubs and Closets**

* * *

Nick couldn't believe he was being forced to go to this club opening. He didn't have a date, and therefore had nothing to distract him from the stupidity of his brother's fake date or from his oldest brother's disgustingly adorable new relationship (which just happened to be in the honeymoon stage). He may be the Lucas that falls hard and fast, but his two older brothers were no better than him. At least Kevin had the brains to make a move, though. All Joe managed to do was work up a jealous rage and plot schemes that backfired a lot. Nick sighed and wished Frankie had been old enough to come. At least if Frankie was here Nick could team up with the eight year old to make fun of their brothers.

"Wow, there are so many people here!" Sonny exclaimed in awe over the thumping music.

Nick shrugged, "Eh, same people as usual."

"Do you guys go to a lot of these things?" Sonny asked.

"Our dad thinks its good PR as long as we don't become wannabe alcoholic frat boys," Joe told her with a grin.

"I guess you have to have the right connections to get invites to stuff like this, huh?" Sonny asked rhetorically. She already knew the answer.

"Hey, look! It's London Tipton!" Sonny yelled excitedly as she motioned to an area of tables. Nick's eyes widened and he ducked behind Sonny and Joe.

"Did she see me?" Nick asked frantically.

Joe shook his head, "No, bro. Not yet."

"What is she doing here anyway? I thought she was attending some cruise school or something?" Nick asked as he peeked over Sonny's shoulder.

"Have a history with London, Nick?" Sonny asked with a smirk.

"I went on one date with the girl. She's crazy! And not the attractive kind of spontaneous crazy, but like the lock her up in a padded room kind of crazy."

"Really? She seems so…well ditzy on television. And nice. She seems nice too," Sonny said as she added the last part as an after thought. The last thing she needed was some reporter quoting THAT in a tabloid.

"She tried to kill me with MY golf clubs," Nick whispered.

Sonny laughed at the image of London Tipton chasing Nick with a putter poised to kill.

"It's not funny."

Joe grinned, "Actually it kind of was. Stella and I came as his emergency escape plan. For some reason we thought it would be a good idea to play a round of golf. I still have no idea why because Stella's not exactly great at it and I tend to get bored of the sport really easily and then throw London into the mix and we should have seen it coming. She convinced Nick to do that flirty thing where show someone how to do something by standing really close together, and instead of just swinging for practice she actually just let loose a full powered swing. Her club smacked Nick in the face and sent him crashing to the ground."

"That's it? I could manage that and that doesn't mean I'm crazy," Sonny said in confusion. Nick opened his mouth with a smirk but Sonny quickly turned and glared at him, "Make a single crack about what I just said and I will personally bring London over here to you."

Nick quickly closed his mouth, "Right, got it."

"No, Sonny, that little incident was just the TIP of the ice berg. The day ended with her driving the golf cart into a pond," Joe said as he finally spotted Chad and Stella. "Found 'em."

"Where?" Sonny asked anxiously as she stood on her tip toes.

"Beside the McKenzie Falls poster. Where else?" Joe asked sarcastically. Joe reached out and grabbed her hand, "Let's go dance. You know, catch their attention."

"Hey! You guys can't leave! Where will I hide?" Nick asked desperately.

"I don't know. Go hide behind Kevin and Macy. They probably won't even notice you're there," Joe shrugged as he led Sonny out onto the floor.

"Gee, thanks. Have I ever told you what a joy it is to have you for a brother?" Nick said dryly as the couple walked away.

"NICK!" London's voice called out above the crowd. Nick's eyes widened and he turned and ducked into the nearest room he could find. A janitor's closet. Nick's nose wrinkled up as the stale and musty scent of mops and sponges filled the air. He ignored the odor as best as he could and pressed his ear to the door.

"Nick? Are you here? I could have SWORN I saw you over here," he heard London say on the other side of the door. "Oooh, a mirror. Hello beautiful me."

He let out a breath he d been holding as he heard her heels fade away. He reached up to turn the knob and was horrified to discover that it wouldn't budge. He was locked in. Great. How was he going to get out of this one?

"You shut the door all the way didn't you?" A mystery voice asked from behind him. Nick jumped and spun around. His foot landed in a bucket and he fell backwards against the door.

"Who's there?" He asked hesitantly.

A girl stepped into the tiny bit of light from the small grate in the door, "I'm Zora."

He squinted thoughtfully, "From 'So Random'? What are you doing in a closet?"

"I practically live in closets. The real question is what are YOU doing in a closet?"

"Have you been in here the entire night?" He asked in a shocked tone. "And aren't you too young for a teen club? How did you get in here in the first place?"

Zora quirked an eyebrow at him and then pointed to a grate in the top corner of the back wall, "Duh."

His eyes widened, "You got in by crawling through a vent? Seriously?"

"I don't joke about crawling through vents."

"Will you be offended if I call you weird?"

"Nope, it's what I am. Why deny it?" She grinned.

"This is evening is turning out to be way more eventful than I wanted it to be," Nick muttered with a shake of his head.

"We better start stacking up supplies to make a ladder," Zora said as she pulled a bulk pack of toilet paper off of a shelf.

"What?" He blinked.


	4. Dance Battles and Black Mail

* * *

**Chapter Four: Dance Battles and Black Mail**

* * *

"Hey," Kevin said as he and Macy approached Stella and Chad and Sonny and Joe as they were battling it out on the dance floor. "Have you guys seen Nick lately?"

"Last time I saw him he was trying to avoid London Tipton. I sent him to find you," Joe said. "Now go away. We're winning."

Stella glared at him, "Oh, you SO aren't winning."

"Yeah, Stella and I are the stronger pair. Obviously," Chad said with a flick of his hair.

"Oh please! Joe and I are definitely the better dancers. Deal with it," Sonny huffed.

"Ha! If you were dancing with me you'd be winning but you're not," Chad grinned.

"You think so?" Sonny sneered.

"Yeah, I do."

"Fine."

"Fine."

"Good!"

"Good!"

Stella and Joe exchanged confused glances as Kevin and Macy smirked at each other knowingly.

"You know," Macy said as she stepped in between the two couples. "You could solve ALL of this by switching partners."

"Oh! Yes! Do that! Please! That way all of this will finally be over," Kevin begged.

There was silence amongst the four teens before Stella spoke up softly.

"I wouldn't mind that," She said before adding quickly. "But only if Joe doesn't mind."

Joe smiled softly at Stella, "I don't mind if you don't mind."

Chad cleared his throat and turned to Sonny, "I guess that leaves you and I dateless, and Chad Dylan Cooper can't be dateless."

"He can't, huh?" Sonny asked with a smirk.

Chad waited for Sonny to say something else before sighing and speaking up, "You're not going to make this easy are you?"

She chuckled, "Nope."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Sonny, would you like to be my date for the evening?"

She smiled brightly, "Well, if you insist."

He grinned playfully at her, "I do."

Sonny chuckled as Chad offered her his arm. She took it graciously.

"Okay, great," Kevin said as he clapped his hands together. "Now, can we find Nick?"

* * *

"Um, I think we've stacked up enough supplies. Can we just get this crawling through a vent thing over with?" Nick asked with a sigh.

"Oh we definitely haven't stacked up enough supplies. We have to distribute the sizes evenly or our stack will collapse." Zora said as she reached for a small plastic crate and stacked it on top of the toilet paper.

"You do this a lot don't you?"

"It's sort of a hobby of mine," She said from the top of the stack. "Can you hand me that other crate?"

Nick picked up the crate and stood on his tip toes to hand it to the girl, "Am I even going to FIT in that vent?"

"Oh sure! It's a lot more spacious than you think," Zora said brightly as she placed the crate down and climbed up on top of it. "There, now we can get out of here. I'll go first. You follow. I wouldn't want you falling down the downward portion of the shaft."

"The downward portion of the shaft? Is this safe? I'm not going to die am I?"

"Come on, you big baby. If I didn't know any better I'd think you were an itty bitty baby girl," Zora taunted as she opened the vent. "Now get your rock star butt up here."

She swiftly and smoothly climbed in and crawled forward. Nick stared after her in shock as he climbed up the supplies. How was he going to do this? He cleared his throat nervously and leaned into the shaft and pulled himself up with a bit of difficulty. He army crawled forward and tried to keep Zora in sight, but she was very fast.

"Zora? Could you maybe slow down! Zora!" Nick called urgently.

"Geez, keep up will you!" Zora yelled as she paused and let him catch up.

"You know I'm not as tiny or as fast as you are, little girl! Unlike some people this is the first time I've crawled through a vent like some very clumsy spy," Nick groaned as his head smacked against the top of the vent.

"It's not that much further. We just have to get to the next room," She said as she continued crawling. Nick sighed heavily as she turned a corner. He followed and almost ran into her when she stopped.

"This is it," She announced.

"Good, let's get out of here. I'm starting to get a cramp in my arm," Nick said in relief.

"I'll let you out of here," She said in a wicked tone. "On one condition…"

"Black mail? Really?"

"Do you want to get out of here or not?"

"Fine, what do you want?" Nick asked in a tired tone.

"You've got to say I'm your date so I can stay. I'm determined to see if this club has REAL aliens. Grady and Nico think I'm crazy, but I'm not the one who thinks Aliens live in a night club," She scoffed. "I mean everyone knows they live in the pyramids in Egypt."

"Anything else, your highness?"

Zora held back an evil chuckle as she responded, "You also have to take me to see giraffes on ice."

"Giraffes on Ice? A skating show?" He asked skeptically. "I guess it could be worse."

She smirked and muttered to herself, "You don't know the half of it."

She pushed open the vent, and swiftly crawled out. Nick followed her and tried to slip out gracefully, but ended up flailing his limbs until he hit the floor.

"Ow," he muttered as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Nick? Dude! Did you just climb out of a vent? You're like James Bond!" Kevin exclaimed as he ran to his brother and helped him stand.

"Where did you go?" Joe asked. "We've been looking every where for you."

"I locked myself in the janitor's closet," He admitted reluctantly. "Zora helped me get out."

"Zora?" Sonny asked in shock. "What are you doing here?"

Zora smiled expectantly at Nick. He sighed before he spoke, "Apparently, she's…my date."

Kevin leaned forward and whispered to his brother, "Isn't she a little _young_ for you?"

"She wouldn't let me out unless I agreed to say she was my date…and take her to see some skating show about giraffes," He whispered back through his clenched teeth.

Kevin chuckled, "Sucks to be you, little brother."

"Shut up," Nick groaned as he shoved his oldest brother's shoulder.


End file.
